


Running Away

by orphan_account



Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Depression, Haunting, M/M, Memory Related, Murder, Repressed Memories, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-24
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2019-05-27 21:12:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15033410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Shuichi attempts to remember what led him to the girl's bathroom with three dead bodies and a notebook.





	1. The Build Up

There was surprisingly little blood, for now. Wait, scratch that; there was a lot of blood now. Being stabbed in the neck would do that to you. The other two had been strangled, so he didn't have to worry about them as much. 

He gripped the notebook and whispered to himself, primarily swearing. It all seemed like it wasn't happening. It was the morbid daydream of a kid in middle school, not reality. Maybe if Shuichi closed his eyes for awhile he could fool himself into believing that.

All he could see was black. One, two, three. He could see again. It was still just as horrible.

Shuichi leaned against one of the stall doors. It opened and he fell backwards and hit his head on the edge of the toilet seat. Fuck it hurt. 

Shuichi tried to take it all in one fact at a time. He was a murderer. He had taken a knife and plunged it into the neck of another human being. Shuichi continued thinking as he rubbed his head and got up. Then again, that man had just killed two other people; so that should've made it okay. For some reason Shuichi didn't think the cops would accept that.

He was still bleeding. The short, pale body was at the epicenter of a rather large puddle of blood. Strange, Shuichi thought that it would've been darker. The puddle had just began to reach the dress of the first girl, darkening the pink.

Kokichi was to blame for this. Shuichi's gaze turned to the body once again. Kokichi was facedown and his arms were under his torso: hands on his neck. Shuichi felt anger rise within him. That prick ruined his life. He pulled his foot back and kicked him in the upper thigh. He pulled the other one and landed the blow on his side, almost falling over. Then he stomped on his head. 

Four months ago. That was when Shuichi first met Kokichi. He was sitting in English reading 'Crime and Punishment.' It was a dense read, but the teacher seemed impressed by him taking the challenge of reading it and that was all the incentive to continue. Rumor was that that teacher was always willing to make exceptions for students that impressed her. 

Then he saw him. Despite being in class for two weeks Shuichi didn't know anyone. Scratch that, there was some blonde girl he swore he saw a few other times. But this boy just seemed interesting. He was short, so much so that Shuichi initially thought that he was in elementary school. His hair shot out everywhere, and it was dyed dark purple. He was skinny, and unbelievably pale. Most of all Shuichi looked at his eyes. Purple. It started near his pupil, a lavender, before fading out to white as it reached the corners of his eyes. And he was walking towards him.

The boy jumped up and placed himself in he desk next to Shuichi, and introduced himself as Kokichi, and began speaking. Almost immediately Shuichi was captivated by him. He spoke with a confidence that was completely foreign to Shuichi, accompanied by his natural charm and intelligence. He talked about a wide variety of topics, and genuinely seemed interested in what Shuichi had to say in response. The class's mandatory reading time ended and the lesson began, but Shuichi wasn't paying attention. His thoughts were occupied on the exciting new fact that he had a new friend! 6th grade was going to be great. After school he found Kokichi and invited him over to his house. Shuichi's uncle was a workaholic by any measure and had to be dragged out of the police station almost everyday, so he reasoned that they could have some fun together. His excitement grew when Kokichi seemed to jump at the mention that they'd be alone. The duo walked to Shuichi's house, discussing how their days went. Shuichi's was rather dull, while Kokichi sprinkled little tall tales in throughout, suffixed with reaffirmations that he was lying. It was a pretty short walk on most days, but with Kokichi it seemed to take a lot longer; not that Shuichi was complaining. Shuichi's uncle's house was a small, one-story affair. The roof was black and the entire house was an ugly pale tan. Shuichi took the key out from under the pot of a dead plant and went inside. The house was basically a kitchen connected to a living room with a hallway off to the right. Within the hallway was a bathroom and two bedrooms. The halls were white and adorned with various pictures of the Saihara family. Kokichi ran inside and jumped onto the brown couch, spreading himself out to occupy as much space as possible. Shuichi searched the kitchen for some pretzels, eventually finding the bag. He grabbed it and speed-walked into the living room. Just as he sat down Kokichi piped up and requested a glass of water. Shuichi, happy to be the host, swiftly aquired it. Then Kokichi asked for a blanket. Shuichi, suddenly imagining the both of them under the blanket, retrieved it. Then Kokichi demanded a pillow, and Shuichi obediently fetched it. Passed that Shuichi couldn't remember. He knew... something happened between him and Kokichi. Shuichi leaned against the sink and looked up at the ceiling. He... he couldn't remember the rest of that week. Shuichi looked down at the tiny corpse. Why couldn't he remember? Shuichi exited the bathroom. He had to tell someone. Yes, that was the best solution. There was no way he was getting out of this unscathed, so he might as well have just gotten it over with. He walked out of the bathroom and towards the band room. From almost across the school he could hear all the band kids practicing. Just as he placed a hand on the handle to the room he stopped. How was he supposed to explain this? That three kids, two of which were practicing in this very room just thirty minutes ago, were dead. And that he was complicit in the first two murders, and the murderer in the third. Shuichi turned and ran. He knew that it was the worst decision possible, that it would only make his situation worse, but he still did it. The sound of his sneakers connecting with the tile flooring echoed throughout the halls. His breathing got a little heavier as he burst through a set of side doors. The sun was setting and the parking lot was almost completely empty. Cold air seemed to wrap around Shuichi as he stopped, panting heavily: the gears in his brain beginning to turn as he tried to determine what he was going to do.


	2. Repeat Encounters

There was a nature trail near the school named 'The Riverwalk.' Shuichi chose to run there. His uncle took him there once or twice before and Shuichi had fond memories of the beauty of the area: the trees were short with long twisting branches that formed a wall between the dirt trail and the river. All the plants were a dark green sprinkled with dew that made them shine when the sun was out. 

Shame that it was night when Shuichi ran onto the track, panting and gasping. The beauty of the area was concealed from sight by the darkness. Shuichi fell to his knees. His life was over. There was no way they wouldn't have found them by now. He could see it now. One of the girls goes into the bathroom, wondering where her friends are. Once she turns the corner she sees it. Three kids lying on the floor , their clothes stained with the blood coming from the boy's neck. She screams, and falls backwards. She-

"Enjoying the image?" A familiar, abnormally happy voice asked. Shuichi froze up. The sound of small feet kicking up dirt behinf him caused Shuichi to slowly turn around.

Kokichi was behind him, arms outstretched and walking towards him. His purple eyes were glassy and seemed unfocused, with dark bags placed right underneath. His skin was even more pale then usual, if that was even possible. His hair was messy and seemed to be wet. Kokichi's throat had pink blood still running down the front of his body, staining his scarf, jacket, shirt, and pants. When he got close his jovial smile turned into an angry frown as he slapped Kokichi.

"That's for murdering me you prick!" He yelled. Shuichi felt small drops of blood land on his face as he fell face down in the dirt, limbs outstretched. Shuichi was at a loss for words.

Kokichi walked up to Sguichi and kicked him in the upper leg. After a few secondd he kicked him again, this time in the ribs. Finally he stomped on the back of Shuichi's head.

"You could've at least stabbed me in the back, made it symbolic." Kokichi told him. Shuichi began crying as he pulled his knees up to his chest. Kokichi kicked him in the back.

"How does it feel, huh crybaby," Kokichi asked. "Being a murderer?" Kokichi took a knee next to the crying middle schooler. 

"I wasn't a murderer. Just a cleaner. Those two girls were trash. I told you this. They were directionless worms who just occupied some worthless seats in the shitty band. I told you this. You even fucking agreed with me. So I get them in the bathroom, I do what we planned for weeks, and what happens?" Kokichi waited for a response. When all he was met with was sobbing he continued. "You picked up the back-up knife, which we didn't even have to use because everything was going to plan, and you fucking killed me."

Shuichi wished he could respond. He was overcome with the desire to stand, to respond. He wanted to be able to just do those simple two things more than he ever wanted anything else. Yet still, he couldn't even stand up. When he finally managed to sit up he looked around. Kokichi was gone.

As Shuichi got back up he tried to comprehend what just happened. Kokichi was... a ghost? Zombie maybe. Maybe he was just crazy. Shuichi wasn't sure which of those was the worst. Probably Zombie Kokichi.

Shuichi walked with a minor limp on the trail. That was, weird. Shuichi had never seen Kokichi that angry. In fact, Shuichi couldn't remember ever seeing Kokichi angry. Annoyed, yes. That was almost his default state. 

As Shuichi edged towards the left of the trail he started thinking. He really wished he hadn't dropped Kokichi's notebook in the bathroom. He could've used something to read, take his mind off things. 

Kokichi's notebook was nothing more than Kokichi documenting his worldview in a long series of anecdotes. Shuichi mentally slapped himself. He actually listened to that bullshit. All that meritocratic garbage. Shuichi stopped for a second. He looked up and groaned. 

How the hell did he only realize it now? 

Kokichi just fed him all of that bullshit about how some people just took up space, were just wasting resources. No no... Kokichi didn't want to murder anyone. 'Cleansing,' that was the word. And Shuichi listened. Shuichi continued walking. 

He remembered one day in particular. It was lunchtime in the cafeteria and they were sitting together, as usual. Kokichi was rambling on, as usual, and Shuichi was smiling and nodding: captivated by Kokichi's words. Kokichi on that day was talking about trust. Trust in general wasn't a bad thing, that's what he told Shuichi. In that sngular moment he contradicted literally everything else he told Shuichi about trust, but in that moment Shuichi didn't really mind. People just didn't know who to trust. Shuichi trusted him, didn't he? Shuichi of course agreed with a little more vigor than was probably necessary. Kokichi asked him if he really meant it. Shuichi, a little confused, repeated what he said. Kokichi then told him that he knew the perfect way for Shuichi to prove his trust. 

Kokichi took Shuichi by the hand and led him out of the lunchroom. Shuichi noticed that Kokichi had gotten a lot more touchy after inviting him over to his house, but he was pretty sure that that was part of being friends. 

After a minute or two Kokichi dragged Shuichi into the boy's bathroom, searching through his pocket with his free hand. He pulled a blindfold out of his pocket, and led Shuichi into one of the stalls in the middle. Shuichi was nervous as he put the blindfold on, mind racing with questions. Almost the second after he finished the knot he felt Kokichi push him into the stall wall. He gasped and squirmed a little as he felt Kokichi's small hand dance across his chesy, unbuttoning his shirt. Shuichi felt Kokichi's mouth on his exposed shoulder, sucking and biting at the bare flesh while his hand slowly moved downwards. Shuichi's body squirmed forwards and backwards as he turned his head away from the shoulder Kokichi was focusing on. Eventually he felt Kokichi's hand on his crotch, cupping it in his palm. His hand moved up slightly and began unbuttoning Shuichi's pants as his other hand rested on Shuichi's collarbone. Shuichi just wished that he could see what was a happening. He knew what was happening, he just didn't understand it. Shuichi wanted to ask Kokichi to stop, but the words were caught in the bottom of his throat. 

Kokichi eventually pulled Shuichi's penis out of his pants as he gradually increased the pressure on Shuichi's throat. Shuichi felt his breath being cut off as the small, soft hand ran up and down his length. It continued like that for several minutes, Kokichi applying and relieving pressure on Shuichi's throat and gradually while increasing the speed of his strokes until Shuichi eventually came on Kokichi's palm. Immediately after Shuichi finished Kokichi released him, and Shuichi registered somewhere in the back of his head the sound of little footsteps leaving the bathroom. 

Shuichi noticed a bench to the left facing the river. He then became very much aware of the aching in his legs. How long had he been walking before. It was night, but the sun had already mostly set by the time he had started walking the trail. He walked over to the bench and sat down, slouching heavily. The river was noteworthy in the area for white-water rafting, and Shuichi could see why. It seemed like every two feet was a rock emerging from the river with a sphere of white-water around it. Why anyone would want to go in there was a mystery to him. 

"Tired?" Inquired a familiar voice. Shuichi declined to respond even as he felt Kokichi sit next to him. "I'd be if I were you. But that's a lie." 

Shuichi sighed and sat up, looking over at Kokichi. The pink had stopped flowing from his throat, and had darkened to become more of a light red. His eyes seemed to have sunken back in his head and were intensely focused. The smile on his face was wider then it should've been, and his movements seemed to be stiffer than usual. When his arms moved it seemed almost painful for him and his posture was straighter than Shuichi had ever seen. 

"If I were you I'd have tried to cover it up. I had a plan you know. You and me, we were going to break into the office and delete the security footage. We would've gotten away scot-free." 

Shuichi didn't bother responding. He doubted Kokichi would've listened. The two of them sat in silence for a minute or two before Kokichi continued. 

"People are gonna love that notebook, you know, the one you dropped back there? They're gonna have a lot to say about that." 

That's because you're a delusional psychopath Shuichi thought to himself. 

"Anyways, I just wanted to say sorry; about earlier. I guess that was a little mean, and I got a little too mad," Kokichi said as he rested a hand on Shuichi's shoulder. "And I'm very sorry." 

Shuichi watched as Kokichi stood up and began walking towards the river. He jumped from the edge of the riverbank and was instantly swept away by the current. Shuichi stood up and watched as Kokichi's body rapidly approached a large rock. Just as he was about to hit it his head submerged itself under the water. Shuichi moved down to where Kokichi had jumped from and squinted his eyes: looking for where Kokichi would emerge from. After several minutes of looking for him Shuichi sighed and moved back up to the bench.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: I should just finish this fic in this chapter and be done with it. The idea's gotten away from me and I just kind of want to be done with it.
> 
> Also Me: Only write two-thirds of it and post it anyway. Without editing.


	3. Finale

The trail continued in a mostly straight line for quite a while. The river stayed alongside it the entire way, the foliage blocking it from sight getting thicker and thinner seemingly randomly. Shuichi mostly stared at his feet as he walked. His thoughts were mostly occupied by two thoughts: Kokichi and his future. Primarily Kokichi. Shuichi wondered if he was going to haunt him forever; periodically fading in and out to mock and demean him. That was assuming Shuichi would be around long enough for the haunting to matter. He felt a little heavier at the thought. By the time the sun would rise the next day he would be wanted for murder. Shuichi looked up.

Part of him wanted to run. Somewhere in the back of his mind he had an admittedly stupid fantasy of living life on the run from the law, living off his wits. Another part of him wanted to turn around, march back into town, and turn himself in. Then he would tell the truth. He would go to jail, and his life would effectively be over. But it seemed like the right thing to do. Maybe Kokichi would leave him alone.

The final part of him wanted to reach the end of the trail. He could already see the trail elevating. Near the end of the trail hikers could turn onto a smaller trail that led to a high spot over the river. Shuichi imagined the scene play out. He'd arrive at the ledge over the river, walking at a brisk pace. Without pause he'd walk right off the edge and fall into the river. Hopefully he'd hit his head on a rock, then it'd be quick. He might've not even felt anything. Otherwise he would've had to figure out how to drown himself. 

The more and more Shuichi thought about it the more and more the third option appealed to him. It was quick, potentially painless, and would free him from Kokichi and the consequences of what had happened back in the bathroom. 

He had forgotten about the bathroom. Poor girls Shuichi thought to himself. He thought their names were Kaede and Tenko. Something like that. Funny. He barely knew their names but he felt like he knew them very well. Then again, he was glad he didn't. When the memory came back he stopped. The fear in their eyes, the way the brightness in their eyes faded away as Kokichi strangled them. So much of it centered on their eyes. It was all so clear. Kokichi dropped the knife he brought as backup while strangling Kaede. Shuichi bent down to pick it up, tears welling up. A black switchblade with a horse drinking from a river on the handle, balanced on his hand. 

Kokichi finished and turned around, obnoxious grin plastered across his face. Shuichi lunged forward, switchblade held close to his body. He pushed it into Kokichi's throat, Kokichi's smile giving way to shock and confusion. He tried to step to the side as Shuichi pushed forward. The shock of Kokichi's movement caused Shuichi to let go of the switchblade, and Kokichi fell facefirst pitifully grasping for his throat.

Shuichi turned onto a smaller trail, pushing low hanging branches out of the way. The trail got a lot steeper and the trees and other vegetation got a lot less plentiful than before. 

It was only a few minutes before Shuichi saw the ledge. He sped up. Ten feet. Five feet. Three feet. He stopped. His breath got caught in his throat as he looked over the edge. The river was extremely wide and fast, and the moon was partially reflected in the water so that it looked like a rippling white smear. Suddenly his plan seemed a lot less attractive.

"You should come down here! The water's great!" Yelled Kokichi from below. Shuichi looked around for a bit before seeing him.

His upper body was visible and leaning against a large rock. Shuichi could see that part of his sides and arms were melted and stuck to the rock's surface. The top of his head was black, much like his hair, and slowly faded into the color of the rest of his skin. From his neck all the way down to his chest was a similar black. His eyes were larger than any other person's and the pupils were massive as well. The characteristic purple of his eyes was absent, and he had a coy smile.

"You were coming down here, right?"

"Possibly." Shuichi responded.

"Why wouldn't you? It's not like you have anywhere else to go."

Shuichi sat down, swinging his legs over the edge. 

"I was thinking about turning myself in." Shuichi confessed. Kokichi's smile turned into a look of sad confusion. 

 

"Why would you do that?" Kokichi inquired.

"It seems a lot simpler... and quicker. And life in prison doesn't sound so bad." Shuichi answered.

"Seriously? It's prison," Kokichi responded, words dripping with snark. "I don't think you'd last one year."

"Maybe. I was also thinking about running."

"Ooh," Kokichi announced, eyes lighting up with excitement. "My adorable Shuichi, a runaway. Think you can outsmart the cops? Exciting!"

The two of them sat in silence for several minutes. Kokichi's smile never faded, while Shuichi only frowned a little. 

"I think I know why I can't remember." Shuichi piped up.

"Remember what?" Kokichi replied, feigning innocence rather unconvincingly. 

"You should know. You seemed to be able to read my thoughts the last two times we spoke." Shuichi said.

"Oh, Shuichi's being a little detective," Kokichi responded with genuine joy. "Tell me, what's your theory."

"I don't want to." Shuichi stated. "Some part of me either doesn't want to remember or maybe that same part decided that it's better that I don't remember."

Kokichi didn't respond, a look of complete neutrality coming across his face. After a minute or two he finally spoke.

"Interesting." He announced.

"But," Began Shuichi. "That one thing I can't remember in whole was the day I invited you over to my house. But I also remember what you did to me in that bathroom stall. I think you did something to me like that."

"Like what?" Kokichi innocently asked.

"You know what," Shuichi replied, teeth grinding as tears welled up. "You know exactly what I'm talking about!"

Kokichi sighed in response. "Alright, you got me."

Shuichi stood up. "What?"

"I know what you're talking about. I know what you want to know, but I won't tell you. The truth at least."

"What?" Shuichi repeated. The flow of tears had increased and his breathing picked up.

"I'm not going to tell you anything. Even if you get something out of me, it'll definitely be fake."

"Why?" Shuichi's legs felt weak and he was almost hyperventilating. His rage was evident in his entirety. His face was contorted into an expression of pure anger. His arm was outstretched and pointing at Kokichi, and his entire body seemed stiff.

"No real reason." Kokichi announcec with the same tone of a child deliberately annoying an older sibling.

Shuichi's arm dropped. He stood there motionless for several minutes, just staring. All his anger was replaced by exhaustion. Then, he spoke again.

"I think I'm gonna leave."

"And go where?"

"Not sure, somewhere away from you."

"Aww, is my beloved Shuichi mad at me?"

"Listen... just shut up. You've done nothing but ruin my life. The only reason I'm even here is because I was stupid enough to listen to you. I'm a murderer because of you. There's nothing left to be gained from staying here with you."

"Aww, are you going to leave me?" Kokichi's smile then turned into a serious glare. "Do you really think that I'm going to leave you alone?"

"No. But right now I don't care." Shuichi stated as he turned to walk away. Before he could actually walk away he heard Kokichi yell after him again.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Probably the police station."

Shuichi began walking away, ignoring whatever Kokichi yelled after him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he realized that he was probably crazy. But that was okay. It wasn't like it would matter in the long run.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, I'm dissapointed with how this fic turned out.
> 
> Anyway, I'd love it if you would leave a comment telling you what you thought of this, and thank you for reading.

**Author's Note:**

> I've been trying to get into writing a lot more and I've had a few ideas I've been kicking around. 
> 
> Anyways, thanks for reading! I'd really appreciate a comment to let me know what you think.


End file.
